Where Liberalism Is Alive and Well!

I have a hard time watching Cenk Uygur, so when this aired originally, I had the sound down and missed it. Thanks to Twitter, I was informed that Joe Madison got the best of them. I don’t think I would characterize it like that, the two blowhards, Uygur and Sirota, talked over him quite a bit, interrupted him constantly and Joe only really set them back at about 9:30 in the clip. I’m issuing a warning to liberals with high blood pressure, this clip will raise it up – so watch with caution.

Cenk is not a progressive or a liberal, so what in the hell qualifies him to talk about liberals at all. He is a Bush hater who is returning to his conservative roots and making bank off it at MSNBC or what I like to refer to as “Fox News II – Your Trump Headquarters.”

“Throwing the baby out with the bath water” is an expression that isn’t just a cute little metaphor to be blown off like happens so often. It is an expression that has been around for a long time in various forms and the warning should be heeded. What comes to my mind is 2000, with Nadarites handing the presidency to George W. (two wars) Bush. Here is a little history on the saying…from Wikipedia

“And if true, it is important for us, in reference to this Negro Question and some others. The Germans say, ‘you must empty-out the bathing-tub, but not the baby along with it.’ Fling-out yur dirty water with all zeal, and set it careering down the kennels; but try if you can keep the little child!”[6]

Carlyle is urging his readers to join in the struggle to end slavery, but he also encourages them to be mindful of the need to try to avoid harming the slaves themselves in the process.

I’m just loving the direction that the Republican Party has decided to pursue by hitching their wagon to Paul Ryan and his libertarian ideas. It almost makes me want to create a Jane Hamsher sock puppet to go on their websites and encourage them to “keep it up, you’re doing fine”. I would never do that, who has time, but it’s fun to think about.

I’ve said it before that I never expected that the Republican leadership would get behind Ryan’s plan, with it’s blatant assault on senior citizens who VOTE! But apparently their stupidity knows no bounds. The response at town hall meetings since the announcement of the plan shows that it is backfiring on them big time. They have a lot of explaining to do. From the Washington Post…

Democrats, eager to win back the seniors and independents who abandoned the party in last year’s midterm elections, have declared the vote a “moment of truth” and this week launched a media campaign accusing GOP House members of dismantling Medicare and endangering retirees.

The assault has taken some Republicans by surprise, prompting concerns that the party is ceding ground in a policy debate that GOP strategists already viewed as perilous.

I have a feeling that Paul Ryan is going to be a lonely guy pretty soon, he started a ball rolling down hill that is going to roll right over his party and bring Democratic rule back to the House of Representatives. More from The Washington post…

A Washington Post/ABC News poll published this week found that two-thirds of Americans want Medicare to remain as is. That includes 62 percent of independents and nearly eight in 10 people 65 and older — making for an uphill climb for House Republicans trying to reassure constituents.

What is going on in my home State of Michigan is nothing short of outrageous. There really are no adjectives strong enough to describe it, unless you lace them with profanity, which I’m containing myself from doing right now. The national treasure, Rachel Maddow, has thankfully been following this issue and bringing the only national spotlight to this atrocity that I’m aware of. The blogs and Twitter are on fire. When you attack people’s basic rights to representation and put in place a corporate structure for that community – where the assets (land, parks, utilities) are up for auction to the highest bidder, or lowest bidder in some cases, then you are going to cause a backlash. People are rising up and taking action. This will not stand!

We talked a month ago about the remarkable power grab underway in Michigan, where newly-elected Gov. Rick Snyder (R) is now exercising his power to unilaterally fire elected officials, dissolve entire local governments, and impose local dictators “Emergency Managers” without any input from voters. One of the proponents of this new policy called it “financial martial law” — and that was intended to be a defense of the scheme.

[…]

I hope readers will take a few minutes to watch this segment, but there was something Rachel said towards the end of the story that stood out for me: “What is new here is that this state has decided that local elections, locally elected officials are a problem that has to be done away with, that democracy is in the way of fixing problems in the United States now, of making things more efficient, particularly in poor places. Not that democracy is the way we fix problems but that democracy is the problem and it therefore needs to be sidestepped for efficiency sake, for our own good. Governor knows best.

Who The Hell Am I!

I’m a liberal that is extreme in some ways and not in others. I support President Obama and make no apologies for it. I think he has done a phenomenal job, especially when you consider that he inherited a huge mess and has faced unprecedented opposition from a lazy & desperate Republican Party. I’m a film producer/director/editor, adjunct professor, technician, media critic and photographer when I’m not reading left wing blogs and typing on this one. – On Twitter @ExtremeLiberal or Email at liberalforreal (at) gmail.com

Own An Important Part Of American History!

Cicely Tyson narrates this award winning documentary that tells the story of African American migration from the old south to the prosperous north. Winner of 5 Awards including "Best Film" at the Astoria International Film Festival, the "Paul Robeson Award" at the Newark Black Film Festival and "Best Film Relating To The Black Experience" at the XXV International Black Cinema Berlin/Germany!